Today, as we mark the centenary of the Armenian Genocide, remembering the human tragedy recounted within The Sandcastle Girls seems especially appropriate. In this edition of Armchair Adventurer, we explore the devastating historical events in Chris Bohjalian’s haunting novel.

Group Talk

Sarah Bird’s new novel tells the interconnected stories of two girls across seventy years of Okinawan history. To showcase the author’s brilliant ability to conjure setting, we’ve paired descriptions of key locations with one of the maps featured in the book. Explore the book’s richly rendered world!

Once again, Peter Mayle takes us on a Provençal adventure, all the while describing some of the most delightful dishes of the local cuisine. You can experience those vicariously through Mayle’s characters—or dine Provençal style with a delicious recipe for scallops from the Barefoot Contessa, Ina Garten.

We recently asked Mona Simpson to share some insight about her latest novel, Casebook, what we got was a wonderful surprise—a note to readers that probes the inner conflict a writer feels when they’re asked to tell the “story” of their story.

We love learning about the collaborative process between authors and editors! Enjoy our interview with Alexis Landau, author of The Empire of the Senses, and her hardcover editor, Deborah Garrison, in which they discuss the novel’s genesis, their editorial partnership, the challenges of writing/editing historical fiction, and much more.

Go on a literary tour of Paris and pick a title set in France’s capital for your next reading group meeting! We’ll get you started with five suggestions replete with vivid portraits of the city—read the brief excerpt from each to get a sense of how it captures Paris’s unique eternal spirit and ambience.

Cristina Henríquez’s novel The Book of Unknown Americans is a book so rich and multilayered that we jumped at the chance to interview her and get her take on a few of the key themes. Watch clips from our interview!